AIM: To define the relationship between platelet distribution width ( PDW) , fibrinogen ( FIB) and severity of diabetic retinopathy ( DR) .
METHODS: The survey included 99 patients with DR (48 with non-proliferative and 51 with proliferative DR) in our hospital during June 2012 and May 2014. Another 50 diabetic patients without DR and 50 healthy volunteers were matched as controls. Demographic data and disease history were gained. Fasting blood sample were collected to measure PDW, FIB, platelet count, fasting blood glucose and HbA1c.
RESULTS: Compared with healthy controls ( 16. 6%±1.2%) , a significant difference was found in PDW values among diabetic patients ( all P < 0. 05 ). The higher development of DR corresponded with a significantly higher level of PDW 17. 6%±1. 8%, 19. 1%±2. 1%, and 20%±1. 9% for patients without DR, non-proliferative DR and proliferative DR, respectively, the difference had statistical significance (P<0. 05). A significant difference was also found in FIB values among diabetic patients and healthy controls (P<0. 05). After correction for age,
gender, disease duration and HbA1c, multi factor Logistic analysis showed that there were significant increased risks in the prevalence of non-proliferative ( OR: 1. 464, PDW) ( OR: 2. 199, FIB) and proliferative DR ( OR: 1. 652, PDW ) ( OR: 2. 691, FIB ) with the increased PDW and FIB value (all P<0. 05).
CONCLUSION: The PDW and FIB value are parallel with the severity of DR, and there is increased risk of non-proliferative and proliferative DR with the PDW and FIB value increases.

Obej ctive To investigate the role of metastasis associated protein 1(MTA1)in estrogen reg-ulated expression of matrix metalloproteinase -9(MMP-9)and tissue inhibitor of metalprotease -1(TIMP-1) in estrogen receptor( ER ) positive breast cancer cells .Methods MTA1 knockdown cell model was generated based on MCF-7breast cancer cell line by transfected with MTA 1-shRNA.The mRNA and protein level of MMP-9 and TIMP-1 in wild type MCF-7(MCF-7WT)and MCF-7MTA1-shRNA before and after 17β-estradiol ( E2) treatment were examined by Real -time PCR and Western blot respectively .Results The MTA1-shRNA showed maximally 84.9%suppression of MTA1 expression in MCF-7,suggesting a satisfied MTA 1 knockdown cell model was established for subsequent experiments .After treated with E2 for 48 h,MCF-7WT showed an incre-ment of 46%(P<0.05)and 37%(P<0.05)of the mRNA and protein level of MMP -9 and a decrement of 32.3%( P<0.05)and 18.2%(P<0.05)of TIMP-1;MCF-7MTA1-shRNA showed a decrement of 32.3%(P<0.05)and 18.2%(P<0.05)of mRNA and protein expression of MMP -9 respectively but no significant differ-ence in TIMP-1 comparing with MCF-7WT before treated with Estradiol.After E2 treatment,MCF-7MTA1-shRNA didn′t show significant change of MMP -9 except decrements of 32.3%(P<0.05)and 18.2%(P<0.05)in the mRNA and protein levels of TIMP -1.Conclusion MTA1 may be involved in the pathway by which estrogen regulated the expression of MMP -9 but not TIMP-1 in ER positive breast cancer cells .

In order to reveal feasibility of different concentrations of Ca2+ and SA on Platycodon grandiflorum under high temperature stress, the effects of Ca2+ on physiological index and related photosynthetic parameters were studied. Pot cultured P. grandiflorum leaves under the same outdoor conditions were sprayed with CaCl2 and SA separately, and then placed in the high incubator [35 degrees C/25 degrees C (day/night), light intensity 3 600 lx], and sprayed with distilled water at 25 degrees C and under high temperature stress were set as the control. The related photosynthesis, relative conductivity, contents of proline, malondialdehyde, soluble protein, activities of SOD and CAT, ASA and GSH content were measured. The results show that the 6 mmol x L(-1) CaCl2 and 1.5 mmol x L(-1) SA enhanced the activities of SOD and CAT, the contents of proline and soluble protein, and effectively reduced the damage of heat stress on cell membrance. At the same time, the exogenous Ca2+ and SA increased the contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid, the efficiency of leaf photosynthesis and ASA and GSH content, and thus effectively resisted the oxidative stress caused by high temperatures, but with the increasing concentration of spraying, P. grandiflorum decreased the ability to resist high temperature stress. In conclusion, the foliage spraying CaCl2 and SA could reduce the damage of high temperature stress on P. grandiflorum leaves.
Calcium ; metabolism ; Hot Temperature ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; Photosynthesis ; Plant Leaves ; metabolism ; Platycodon ; metabolism ; Salicylic Acid ; metabolism ; Stress, Physiological

Objective To study the differentially expressed microRNA (miRNA) between pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and para-cancerous tissues,and determine related target genes.Methods Nine fresh PDAC tumor tissues and 3 adjacent normal pancreatic tissues were collected,then Agilent miRNAmicroarray with 713 miRNA loci was used to identify the differentially expressed miRNA.Real-time PCR method was applied to verify the up-regulated miRNA.TargetScan 5.1 and miRandaV5 software were used to analyze the related target genes.Results miRNA microarray identified 11 PDAC related miRNAs,among them,the expressions of miR-194*,miR-192*,miR-602,miR-194 were up-regulated,while the expressions of miR-139-3p,miR-513a-5p,miR-630,miR-30c-1 *,miR-887,miR-508-5p,miR-516a-5p were down-regulated.The expressions of miR-192,miR-194 and their homolog were verified in 31 PDAC tumor tissues.After software analysis,it was found that target genes of miR-192 were ZEB2,CXCL-2,EEF1A1,ERCC3,and target genes of miR-192 * were DCC,SMAD4,FAS,and target genes of miR-194 included DACHI,IGSF11,PTPN2,RBBP4,while target genes of miR-194 * included CD40LG,CIDEB,FHL1.Conclusions Eleven differentially expressed miRNAs are present in PDC,and they may be involved in the occurrence and development of PDC.

Objective To study the supporting role of traditional Chinese medicine GanFuAn in the treatment of high-risk state of liver cancer by color Doppler ultrasound.Methods Based on a number of joint detection of tumor markers,85 patients of liver cancer were selected from patients with chronic hepatitis B.Among these 85patients,50 patients were selected in a treatment group and treated with Chinese herbal preparation GanFuAn,with ultrasound and tumor markers serving as joint monitoring; while the other 35 patients were selected in a control group and treated with conventional treatment.Results In the treatment group,the liver tumor markers or liver tumor continually diminished.5 cases showed tumor disappear.38 cases showed effective results,while 7 cases showed no effects.The total incidence rate of liver cancer was 14％;while in the control group,none case showed tumor disappear.20 cases showed effects and 15 cases showed none effects.The cumulative incidence rate of liver cancer induced by chronic hepatitis was 43％,with all the cases have been confirmed by pathology.Conclusion Color doppler ultrasound was an intuitive,non-invasive dynamic method to monitor liver tumor's growth and decline.

Objective To reveal evolution characteristics and antigenic epitope variabilities of hemagglutinin (HA) gene of H3N2 viruses in Guangdong during 2014-2015.Methods The HA gene nucleotide sequence of influenza H3N2 virus isolated during 2014-2015 in Guangdong Province was selected by spatial-temporal distribution.The HA gene nucleotide sequences were compared with global HA genes downloaded from GenBank and GISAID and the gene nucleotide mutations were analyzed.The phylogenetic tree and the entropy chart were conducted.Results Compared with HA gene of vaccine strain A/Texas/50/2012,the substitutions of 25 amino acid sites occurred in the HA gene of the 17 Guangdong strains during 2014 to 2015.The epitope A,B,D and E of the HA1 gene developed mutations,which involved 11 amino acid sites.One glycosylation site deletion occurred in A/Guangdong/ 55/2015 in virtue of the N38K site mutation.The high mutation site was at 175 with entropy value of 1.16.The 363 site might be the positive selection while the 368 and 425 sites might be the negative selection sites by comprehensive evaluation of the screening results of the single likelihood ancestor countincy (SLAC),fixed effects likelihood (FEL) and internal fixed-effects likelihood (IFEL) model.Conclusions The mutations emerge in the epitopes A,B,D and E of HA gene of the Guangdong H3N2 stains.Evolution at 363 site is positive selection while those at 368 and 425 sites are negative selection.The mutation accumulation might lead to the epidemic of influenza H3N2.

Objective To investigate the effect of alprostadil combined with Salvia miltiorrhiza in treatment of hyperlipidemic acute pancreatitis.Methods Patients with high cholesterol of hyperlipidemic acute pancreatitis were randomly divided into control group and treatment group,32 cases in each group.The control group were treated with conventional therapy combined with alprostadil 10μg intravenous injection,the treatment group was given Salvia miltiorrhiza injection 20mL vein infusion on the basis of the control group.The abdominal pain relief time,APACHE -II,C reactive protein levels,prognosis,hospitalization time and cost were compared between the two groups.Results The abdominal pain relief time,APACHE -II score,C reactive protein level in the treatment group were (5.31 ± 1.09)d,(2.34 ±1.18),(48.41 ±22.64)mg/L,which were better than those in the control group (8.16 ±1.39)d, (4,47 ±1.68)and (65.34 ±18.02)mg/L,the differences were statistically significant (t =9.08,0.14,5.84,-0.49,3.31,all P <0.05).There was no difference in mortality between the two groups (P >0.05).The operation rate of control group was 31.25% (10 /32),which was significantly higher than that of the treatment group [6.25%(2 /10)],the total hospitalization time,total cost of the treatment group were (14.50 ±1.55 )d and (4.97 ± 1.00)ten thousand yuan,which were significantly lower than those of the control group (16.78 ±1.83)d and (5.72 ± 1.71)ten thousand yuan,the differences were statistically significant (χ2 =6.65,t =1.00,t =5.39,all P <0.05). Conclusion Alprostadil combined with Salvia miltiorrhiza injection in the treatment of hyperlipidemia hyperlipidemia acute pancreatitis is safe,has good treatment effect,and can shorten the course of disease,reduce patients'hospitaliza-tion time and cost,and effectively improve the cure rate.

The gene encoding the phosphatidylserine synthase in Escherichia coli K12 Sgal-(ExPASy P23830) was amplified by PCR. After DNA sequence analysis, it was inserted into the inducible expressive shuttle vector pBES of Bacillus subtilis, which was constructed in the lab, and the recombinant plasmid pBES-pss was transformed into competent cells of the Bacillus subtilis strain DB104. The positive transformant DB104 (pBES-pss) was grown on Bacillus subtilis common fermentation medium, which contained 30?g/ml kanamycin. After 2 hours cultivation, sucrose was added and increased to the final concentration of 2% for induction and this phosphatidylserine synthase was secreted into the medium. The result of SDS-PAGE showed that the molecular weight of the protein was 52kDa and the result of enzyme coupling colorimetric method showed that the enzyme activity was 1.50U/ml. The recombinant Bacillus subtilis has increased the yield of phosphatidylserine synthase which will be used for industrial biosynthesis of phosphatidylserine.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Astragalus-Angelica Mixture (AAM) on osteopontin (OPN) expression in rats with chronic nephrosclerosis.

METHODSChronic nephrosclerosis model rats induced by repeated intraperitoneal injection of puromycin were randomly divided into the model group, AAM group and Irbesartan (an antagonist of angiotensin) group. The experimental course lasted 12 weeks. Blood and urine samples were examined by biochemical method. Kidney tissue was taken for pathological stain and immunohistochemical method and was applied to examine OPN expression, mononuclear macrophage, laminin in extracellular matrix and decorin expressions.

RESULTSAAM showed the effects of decreasing urinary protein and improving renal function similar to that of Irbesartan. It also could alleviate the pathological damage of kidney tissue, especially in decreasing renal tubular mesenchymal damage index. The accumulation of decorin and laminin in the mesenchymal extracellular matrix significantly decreased. Renal tubular OPN expression and mesenchymal infiltration of mononuclear macrophage decreased significantly and in a positive correlated manner (r = 0.885, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONAAM has similar renal protective action to that of Irbesartan, this action may be related to the inhibition of up-regulated OPN expression.

Animals ; Astragalus Plant ; Drug Synergism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Male ; Nephrosclerosis ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; Osteopontin ; Phytotherapy ; Puromycin ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sialoglycoproteins ; biosynthesis

Background and purpose:The incidence of liver cancer is high in China. Primary liver cancers usually occur in patients with liver cirrhosis, which is a challenge for the early diagnosis of liver cancer. Our purpose is to investigate the efifcacy of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) in the early identiifcation and diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by regularly tracking and supervising the high risk population. Methods:A total of 320 high risk patients of HCC admitted in our hospital from February 2011 to November 2013 were enrolled in this prospective study. All patients underwent conventional ultrasound and hepatic CEUS. The differential diagnosis of malignant HCCs from benign ones was based on the enhancement patterns of hepatic lesions in different phases on CEUS. Results:Twenty patients were diagnosed as small HCC among 320 HCC high risk patients who were under regular surveillance using CEUS and all were pathologically conifrmed. Seven of the 20 HCC cases were smaller than 1.0 cm and 13 measured 1.1-2.0 cm. There were 6 (30.0%) HCCs presented as“early wash-in and slow wash-out”atypical pattern of HCC. The small size of the lesion and iso-echogenicity were the main factors of atypical pattern of HCC on CEUS.Conclusion:Ultrasonography and CEUS surveillance is a useful strategy for the early detection of small HCCs in high risk patients, which can help them to receive proper therapeutic management in time.